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| Revolution the only solution at United Posted: 04 Sep 2014 01:17 AM PDT
If Ander Herrera and Luke Shaw were a promising first date back in June, Marcos Rojo the long overdue call for a second meeting and Angel Di Maria the – extremely expensive – first dinner out and Daley Blind the movie date that followed the meal, then the arrival of Radamel Falcao was undoubtedly the moment in which the girl United had not even dared to look at for fear of rejection invited the club back to her place.
Whether the invite will lead to a glass of wine before a “thanks for tonight” dismissal or to a night of passionate love remains to be seen, but the revolution United fans had hoped to see it’s undeniably underway. A drastic reshuffle of the ranks had been long overdue at United, with the need for reinforcements criminally overlooked by Sir Alex Ferguson and those who – briefly – came after him, before the cracks Fergie had so masterfully papered upon surfaced simultaneously in all of their brutality. It hasn’t been plain sailing for Van Gaal in his first two months, in fact the Dutchman has had to navigate much rougher seas than he would perhaps envisaged before he arrived at Old Trafford for the first time and he has already come under scrutiny by sections of the media, who are suddenly wary of the threat posed by United. Of course, Van Gaal’s start to the season has been far from ideal, his system yet to be completely grasped by his players, as United stumble from unexpected defeats to turgid draws serving up the same horrible brand of football David Moyes was lambasted for last season. However, while on the pitch things might not have changed, off it the situation couldn’t be more diametrically opposite to the shambles that unfolded under Moyes’ guidance. Where the former United manager was happy to hand chronic under-performers five-year deals as United continued to carry passengers, Van Gaal has shipped out 17 players, on loan or otherwise, clearing a sizeable portion of the deadwood that had infested the club for the past couple of years. The former Holland manager doesn’t carry passengers, nor is he afraid to make demands. Poorly planned as his transfer strategy might have been, it’d be hard to deny that Moyes was badly let down by the club last summer. However, while the Scotsman toed the party line and refrained from knocking onto Ed Woodward’s door, Van Gaal has not only knocked on the door, he has brutally ripped it off its hinges and demanded results. And, at least in terms of signings, results have indeed been delivered. Herrera’s untimely injury has made things more complicated for United in the first couple of weeks of the campaign, but pre-season showed the Basque has all the credentials to develop into a crucial cog of Van Gaal’s machine, while Angel Di Maria took all of 65 minutes to impress his new fans and United look to have finally found a fitting owner for the number 7 shirt. Despite what the press might say, Rojo was one of Argentina, and indeed of the whole tournament, best performers at the World Cup, therefore there should be plenty to be excited about the former Sporting Lisbon defender, while Blind is a typical Van Gaal signing, which is a guarantee in itself. Shaw has followed a familiar path so far: wonderfully talented while at a medium-sized English club, overpaid and overrated since he’s joined United, at least according to Fleet Street’s finest, who have also conveniently ignored that Falcao’s arrival on loan means United have captured one of the world’s best strikers with a relatively risk-free deal. It would, of course, be naive to expect Van Gaal to wave a magic wand over his new signings and steer United to the title, for even the best players and the best managers require time to settle into a new system and the £150m United have spent this summer will ensure pressure will be firmly on their shoulders from now until May. It would also be easy to overlook the fact that United have only partly addressed their gaping hole in midfield, while the defence looks suspiciously shaky after the departure of Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra. However, Rome, to use one of the cheapest cliches available, wasn’t built in a day, and the fact that United still require work despite spending more than they had ever done speaks volume for the disrepair and misleading sense of comfort the club had been allowed to fall in over the past couple of years. By their very nature, revolutions are seldom perfect or pacific, often brutal and likely to require time to yield results but, at long last, United have finally taken a couple of steps in the right direction. |
| Ed Woodward: The Wolf of Busby Way Posted: 03 Sep 2014 10:56 PM PDT
"A world-class midfielder and a world-class centre back, that's all I need!", Louis Van Gaal begged as Ed finished his line of cocaine using Danny Welbeck's transfer request. For all of six seconds Ed was committed to making sensible decisions and acting on what the club really needed, but then the coke kicked in.
The thing is no one really complained when Woodward returned 3am the next morning in the same clothes, smelling like Dan Bilzerian's beard with Di Maria and Falcao on each arm. And realistically they shouldn't. Ed Woodward resembles the uni student that blows his entire loan on inflatable furniture and custom shot-glasses when he hasn't eaten for three weeks. However the massive transfer fees and even bigger names are obscuring the truth behind United's transfer strategy this summer. Many will question whether United have strengthened in the right areas, still unsatisfied with the players brought in to occupy the midfield and defence. A closer analysis does show that these areas have been addressed, just not quite the way fans were expecting. United have brought in a combination of versatility and world class quality. Blind, Rojo and Di Maria can play a great number of positions. Defensively, Blind and Rojo will strengthen United hugely, both can occupy a first team spot and cover positions that previously the club has struggled to fill. It would be naïve to think that Di Maria has been bought to only play as a winger, for last season he did an excellent job in midfield for Real Madrid and it is obvious Van Gaal wants him to recreate this role at Old Trafford. This means United have brought in three midfielders this season and three defenders. Versatility is key in understanding the strategy. So Ed did actually buy the necessary requirements, he just made it look like he was nipping out to buy eggs and milk only to return with Charlie Sheen's mum, a rubber glove and three cans of femfresh. This explains his decision to celebrate by popping a couple lemmon loods and signing Falcao late on Monday night. In true Belfort fashion, he acted impulsively and seized the opportunity. As the dust settled the next morning and Woodward woke up in Gernsey holding a half drunk bottle of Shinji Kagawa's tears and a stream of offensive texts funnelling through from Malky Mackay he might wonder what happened during the crazy night that were the last two weeks of the transfer window. No one is quite sure yet, but someone should probably let Phil Neville out of the washing machine. Will Dawson Follow @William__Dawson |
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